Friday, 14 May 2010

Argento Book Update/Reviews

A few reviews of my book about Dario Argento's film work - titled, appropriately enough, 'Dario Argento' - have been appearing in various magazines and websites over the past month... I just thought I'd post them here and keep track of what folks are saying about it. So far, so good - it has been garnering mainly quite positive feedback. Which is nice. Stay tuned for more soon, as the book has just been published Stateside this month too.

The review from this month's Total Film

Reviewer Jamie Russell claims it "Dismembers the director's body of work like one of his knife-wielding maniacs - and is bang up to date... A decent introduction."

A closer look

An article about the book and an interview with me in The Irish News

The review as it appears in this month's SFX - amongst other bullet-pointed things they said it was "Low on buzz-words" Huzzah!

A closer look

According to Horrorview the book is a "Meticulously detailed but vividly written piece of work."

The first review of the book appeared on the Danish website Uncut. If your Danish is as good as mine - you can read a (very) rough translation here... Reviewer Lars Gorzelak Pedersen said "I devoured Gracey little book in a short time and is convinced that it will be welcome from both experienced Argento enthusiasts as horror fans who just want to know what the hype is about, or who want to enrich their experience of the director's films with new perspectives."

Horrornews.net described it as "A roadmap for fans. Do yourself a favour, pick up this book, and let it guide you into the realms of an Italian Horror master."

According to the latest review over at Cinema Somnambulist, "Gracey approaches the material with energy and intelligence... You'll be dusting off your Dario Argento DVDs to reevaluate even the titles you didn't think you liked before."

Michael Mackenzie at Land of Whimsy claims it is "A study that is commendably even-handed in its approach... An excellent introduction to Argento - Gracey clearly knows his stuff, and a love of all things Argento shines through on each page."

Greg B. over at Cinesploitation reckons "the knowledge dropped by Gracey is impressive and very thorough. As someone who is not a fan of Argento, this book actually put a bug in my ear to check out his early work."

According to The Toxic Graveyard, "It’s incredible. The amount of detail, information and analysis is astounding. Beyond that the book is a treasure trove of info." 8/10

Jennie Kermode over at Eye for Film commented: "Gracey's book is the most thorough on the subject yet."

According to issue 104 of Rue Morgue, 'Dario Argento' by James Gracey is "Concise, well-written and researched... worthwhile offering that will no doubt please diehard Argentophiles, as well as those just discovering his savagely beautiful work."

According to horror website Benevolent Street 'Dario Argento' is "Highly recommended for fans, and for those seeking to learn a little more about his movies... Make sure to check it out."

According to the latest FrightFest emagazine, 'Dario Argento' (Kamera Books) by James Gracey is not only "Well written and comprehensive," it is also "'An invaluable guide for die-hard fans and recentconverts." Thanks to Stuart Barr for the kind words!

11 comments:

Glad its going well and you're picking up some good notices James. I still havent got around to getting myself a copy, but I will do before long. What is all this "low on buzz words" business? - I'm much more likely to criticise a work for having too many buzz words, rather than too few of them!

Behind the Couch is a term used as a humorous metaphor to describe the actions that a state of fear may drive someone to: for example, a young child hiding 'behind the couch' when watching a scary film or TV show. Its use generally evokes a feeling of nostalgia: safe fear in a domestic setting.

In the case of this blog, it also denotes the reviewer hiding behind the couch in shame, due to the huge amount of trashy horror films he watches...

"Gracey approaches the material with energy and intelligence... You'll be dusting off your Dario Argento DVDs to reevaluate even the titles you didn't think you liked before." - Cinema Somnambulist

"A study that is commendably even-handed in its approach... An excellent introduction to Argento - Gracey clearly knows his stuff, and a love of all things Argento shines through on each page." - Land of Whimsy

"It’s incredible. The amount of detail, information and analysis is astounding. Beyond that the book is a treasure trove of info. 8/10." - The Toxic Graveyard

"Sure to contain something new for even the most dedicated Argento fan." - Eye for Film"Highly recommended for fans, and for those seeking to learn a little more about his movies... Make sure to check it out." - Benevolent Street

'The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown.'

H.P. Lovecraft

'Like one, that on a lonesome roadDoth walk in fear and dread,And having once turned round, walks on, And turns no more his head; Because he knows a frightful fiend Doth close behind him tread.'

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

'A shudder through the silence creptAnd death athwart the noonlight swept…Graves closed round my path of life,The beautiful had fled;Pale shadows wandered by my side,And whispered of the dead.'

Sarah Helen Whitman

'We make up horrors to help us cope with the real ones.'

Stephen King

'Human beings are the only living creatures endowed with a full awareness of their own mortality.'

Alex Lickerman, Buddhist Physician

'A house is never still in darkness to those who listen intently; there is a whispering in distant chambers, an unearthly hand presses the snib of the window, the latch rises. Ghosts were created when the first man awoke in the night.'